I hope to use this blog as a journal to help me remember "things my grandchildren have done" as well as life in general. Since I last wrote, I had a whole extra grandchild!
His name is Teddy and oh, what a joy he has been!! He is now five years old and such a unique individual. I hope to recollect some of the things that have been seared into my memory as I play catch-up on here.
But, for this entry, I will be writing about things that have been going on with me for the past couple of months. Last school year, Teddy was in 4K. Since he only went there for a half day, I still got to spend time with him. We spent those half days doing many arts and crafts, playing games, reading, watching favorite shows and movies and taking walks to our favorite bakery.
Then I spent the summer with all 3 of my grandsons....and what adventures we had. Living next to Lake Michigan means that we got to have beach days....the lake is my favorite place to be
We went to Manitowoc Aquatic Center and had picnics at city parks.
Then came fall. In order to understand the situation, you should know that I have always been a stay at home mother...by choice. When my kids were little, I found all kinds of reasons to "justify" my staying home. Bob and I would have to work different shifts in order for both of us to work. There was nobody I trusted enough to watch my kids for any amount of time on an ongoing basis. Day Care was unsafe! I would miss all of their school events if I worked first shift (Bob worked second shift). Working third shift at a local nursing home was one of the hardest things to do. One of my children had ADHD, and I really felt that I needed to concentrate on helping him. All of the above reasons cemented my decision to become a stay at home mom until all of my kids were out of high school.
So, after all of my kids were in college, I decided to go back to college myself and earn a degree! I was accepted into UW Platteville in their Distance Education program. Halfway through, I became a grandmother and I decided to continue my pursuit of a degree while becoming a daycare provider for my grandchildren.....again by choice. There was no way that I would have any of my grandchildren being taken care of by a stranger....not with all of the horror stories that are out there. So, from the time that my daughter Rianna went to work until the day that Teddy graduated from 4K, I (and Papa) happily babysat for all of my grandchildren. Luckily, I did have help with the girls, as their Grammee Laurie retired early and cared for the girls for half the week.
Now, fall of 2018. No more babies at Grandma's house...at least not on a regular basis. At my age, I suddenly find myself at a loss. as I prepare myself to go into the working world, I have found myself, at times, to be profoundly sad....almost to a point of depression. I have been trying to figure out what is wrong with me. I now realize that I am most likely going through something that I have never really had to go through before....empty nest syndrome. I am honing my skills from my degree and looking up possible career searches. Which may seem kind of funny to some of my friends and family, since two of my high school friends are already retired (government workers). But, I plan on working until at least 67....if not later.
Unless I win the lottery......lol.
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